Two Restaurants, one in Atlanta and the other in Duluth, failed the health inspection recently. On February 20, the Georgia Department of Public Health inspected Happy Buddha, located at 1457 Virginia AVE in Atlanta, and gave it 52 points.
The GNR Health Departments gave Royal China, located at 3960 Venture Dr in Duluth, only 56 points on February 21. As the scores are below the minimum required, the Metro Atlanta restaurants were given the failing grade of “U”.
Highlights
- An Atlanta city restaurant with a “U” grade last Thursday after several food safety violations were reported there.
- A Duluth city restaurant was based with a “U” grade last Friday after an instance of repeat violations and other issues were reported.
- Both restaurants will face a follow-up inspection, failing which they may face permit suspension.
Happy Buddha Found In Violation of the Food Code
The Atlanta food establishment, Happy Buddha was inspected by the public health department in the afternoon, from 1 PM to 3 PM, on Thursday. An inspection report that has been released to the public cites several cases of violations of the food code at the restaurant.
While many of the violations were corrected on-site, the inspectors gave some time to solve the others.
Issues that Led to the Health Inspection Failure
The report begins by citing that the location of the designated area of eating, drinking, or smoking for employees can cause cross-contamination. Clothes of employees were seen stored on top of the equipment in undesignated areas as well.
There were also multiple cans with significant dents that were stored on the shelves in the dry storage areas and in the walk-in cooler. The report also stated that a plastic single-use bowl was being used as a scoop in a rice container.
The openings of the establishment that lead to the outside could not be properly sealed when it is not in operation, the report stated.
Several cases of issues with food storage were found in the restaurant. Raw beef stored above ready-to-eat chicken and food items stored uncovered were observed.
There was also beef and shrimp that were not stored at a low enough temperature. Food was seen stored on the floor as well. Food items were seen in storage containers that did not have labels with the common name of the food item.
Strainers and whisks were seen stored as clean while they were still dirty. The report also noted that proper air drying of Equipment and Utensils was not being done before putting them away for storage.
Issues are Yet to Be Resolved; A Follow-up Inspection Scheduled
Most of the issues mentioned above were solved on-site simultaneously with the inspection. However, the few remaining issues were to be resolved by February 23.
Further, the follow-up issues will occur on March 2. If the issues persist or the restaurant is not able to pass the inspection, its permit may be suspended.
The full health inspection report for the restaurant is available online.
Royal China’s Failure in Latest Health Inspection
Royal China was inspected by the health department between 11 AM and 1:30 PM on Friday. The inspectors found several cases of food safety violations, leading to a low score of 56.
Major Violations Cited In the Inspection Report
The report starts by stating the lack of active managerial control in the establishment by the person in charge. Multiple violations have led to the failing score, for which the PIC is held responsible.
An employee was seen chewing gum inside the kitchen. Personal items of employees were seen stored on tops of clean equipment. The employee’s restrooms did not have disposable paper towels for hand drying.
In the case of a second consecutive violation, a cup was seen sitting inside the handwashing sink, which is meant to be used only for washing hands. If the violation of the same food code is observed in the next inspection, the restaurant may face permit suspension.
Inspectors also saw fish stored underneath a leaking fan inside the walk-in freezer. It was also reported that the facility had not retained the shell stock (clams and oysters) tags information on-site.
Inedible flowers and raw oysters above ready-to-eat blood, raw pork above prepped green onions, raw shrimp above sugar cane, raw beef above raw mushrooms, and raw chicken above cooked beef were all issues with the storage in the walk-in cooler.
Temperature-sensitive food items that lacked the date of preparation labels were also seen. Raw intestines and shrimp were seen thawing at room temperature as well. Multiple containers of food items were seen stored on the floor inside the freezer.
There were also two ice machines with a black mold-like substance on the interior top area. The Bamboo whisks that were being used in the facility were in poor condition and were no longer easily cleanable, the report stated.
Follow-up Inspection Coming in 7 Days
As per the instructions of the inspectors, the restaurant solved most of the issues cited above on-site during the inspection. Only the issues concerning the ice machine are yet to be resolved, and the deadline for it will be March 3.
The report said that the follow-up inspection would happen by February 28. The additional required inspection will happen in 12 months. Unsatisfactory scores, repeat violations, and uncorrected violations will all be grounds for permit suspension.
The full health inspection report for the restaurant can be accessed online.
Other than the restaurants that are mentioned above, all the other restaurants that were inspected were able to pass the inspection on the respective dates. Many of the restaurants were even able to successfully score a perfect 100. A majority of them scored in the 90s as well, securing the “A” grade.
